Rice balls and empanadas

My friends invited me over to lunch since we didn't have school on Thursday because it was a holiday and Friday because it was a "sandwich" day (in between a holiday and the weekend...I like how these Chileans think). We made some rice balls called "Shingio", which is basically like sushi, but in a ball and fried. Inside we put shrimp, green onion, cream cheese, and basil.

We also made some cheese empanadas and ate ceviche. Another delicious Chilean meal.

School anniversary party

I guess in Chile when there's a party, there's karaoke. The school held an asado to celebrate its 14 year anniversary. It was the same night as Sra. Leo's birthday party, so I went afterwards. People didn't start getting there until about 10:30, so when I showed up an hour late at 10 (it was "supposed" to start at 9), I was early. I'm still learning the Chilean casual time system. Anyway, we ate some more good food and sang karaoke. Me and the other new American sang Backstreet Boys...naturally.

Happy birthday Sra. Leo!

The lady that I live with, Sra. Leo, had her birthday on Wednesday night and that means a party. She invited a bunch of her friends and made dinner for everyone. It was very nice and her friends were all very friendly. And the food was delicious.

Third Graders

I started taking over a third grade class which means I teach math and science to both third grade courses. Here is the other their grade class...sweet and rowdy and awesome in one. And they bring me homemade donuts to eat. :)

Corrida del Medio Ambiente

I finally found people to run with!! I saw a sign one day while running on the beach that said there was to be a race the following Sunday, so I signed up. I went to the race and was very pleased to see other runners and healthy people around. I got a free t-shirt and hat and the sign-up was free! The race was supposed to go at 11am but didn't end up starting for another 45 minutes...so much for that warm-up. It was a 3k and I won for the women! I ended up getting 7th overall. It was super fast and I didn't like the short distance, but it was fun to race. Afterwards I met these people...who are all part of a running club and the guy in the middle is the coach. They invited me to come to their practices and train with them every night at 7pm right on the beach by my house. So pumped.

La Esmeralda

After lunch, we went walking by the port and saw that a tour boat was about to go on its last tour of the night...so we jumped on. It goes out to sea to give you a tour of the buoy that marks the spot of the famous sunken ship, La Esmeralda. Back in the day there was a huge battle between Chile and Peru (when Iquique was still part of Peru) and this ship, La Esmeralda sank to the bottom of the sea with tons of unknown sailors (that's what the Marinero Desconocido in commemorating...). The ship is still there and the buoy marks its spot. There is a replica of the ship on shore that was turned into a museum so you can see what the ship used to look like.

So the boat took us first to the sea lion rocks where the sea lions sunbathe, then around the port to check out the big ships and docks, then out to the buoy. Unfortunately, we left so late that by the time we got to the buoy it was too dark to see anything...but at least it was a nice boat ride!

Comida de los andinos

A friend took me out to lunch last Sunday to a typical Andino restaurant in Iquique so that I could try some new things. I don't remember the names of anything I tried, but it was all delicious. The first thing we ate was like a mushy cornbread thing wrapped in a corn husk. (It sounds gross but it was really tasty). Then I ordered a typical soup that had llama meat in it! I couldn't tell the difference between that and the chicken, but it was good. My friend got lomo a lo pobre which is basically steak with potatoes. Everything "a lo pobre" just has potatoes with it...in any form. Afterwards we got some mate tea with coca leaves.